Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Illinois

Bakeries and dessert shops in Fulton County, IL

How Fulton County, IL compares with other counties and the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,610 of 1,889 scored counties
#57 of 67 scored counties in Illinois

Listings
12
3 chain locations (25%)
Official establishments
10
All snack bars and retail bakeries
Household spending a year
$47.5M
On food away from home · $3,442 a household
Spending per listing
$4M
5% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.7
11% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
32,901
−2.0% since 2020

See the bakeries and dessert shops around any address in Fulton County

The site report maps the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Fulton County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

For bakeries and dessert shops, Fulton County has a Groundwork market score of 30 (lower middle): #1,610 of 1,889 scored counties and #57 of 67 scored counties in Illinois. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 12 bakeries and dessert shops in Fulton County. 3 of them (25%) are chain locations, against 35% across the U.S. That comes to 8.7 for every 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 9.8.

At $3,442 per household (15% below the U.S. average), households in Fulton County spend about $47.5M a year on food away from home. That works out to $4M per shop, 5% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. That spending covers all food away from home, which bakeries and dessert shops share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in Fulton County classed as snack bars and retail bakeries. That is one for every 1,380 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops: coffee shops and cafes are counted too. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Fulton County declined 2.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Fulton County compares

The same measures for Illinois and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the bakeries and dessert shops counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Bakeries and dessert shops in Fulton County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureFulton CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.79.99.8
Spending per listing$4M$4.3M$4.1M
Households per official establishment (all snack bars and retail bakeries)1,3801,6201,369
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+23.1%+24.6%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.0%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,442$4,215$4,070
Median household income$60,599$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score3044

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5 → 10All snack bars and retail bakeries
Employees, 2023
97
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
3All snack bars and retail bakeries with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
123 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
12The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in Fulton County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3. These official figures cover all snack bars and retail bakeries, not only bakeries and dessert shops.

Population and households in Fulton County

Population, 2025 estimate
32,901−2.0% since 2020
Households
13,795
Median age
44.1
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
866 sq. mi.
People per square mile
38
Median household income
$60,599+17.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$78,763
Median home value
$107,200
Jobs located here
8,322
Daytime population
27,980Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Fulton County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Fulton County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Bakeries and dessert shops across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for bakeries and dessert shops, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Fulton County marked.

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for bakeries and dessert shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Ogle County, IL76125.8$6.8M−0.7%#142 of 1,889
2Clinton County, IL7074.8$8.6M+0.6%#254 of 1,889
3McLean County, IL70395.6$7.3M+0.1%#256 of 1,889
4Livingston County, IL7085.5$6.9M−2.1%#258 of 1,889
5Grundy County, IL70188.7$5M+2.9%#272 of 1,889
6Kendall County, IL69429.3$5.2M+9.9%#299 of 1,889
7St. Clair County, IL68646.3$6.1M−2.5%#311 of 1,889
8Lee County, IL6775.2$7.1M−3.4%#326 of 1,889
9Monroe County, IL67128.7$5.3M−0.3%#338 of 1,889
10Jefferson County, IL6664.0$8.5M−2.3%#354 of 1,889
57Fulton County, IL30128.7$4M−2.0%#1,610 of 1,889

Other business types in Fulton County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many bakeries and dessert shops are in Fulton County, IL?

Fulton County has 12 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count bakeries, ice cream, donut and dessert shops, candy stores. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as snack bars and retail bakeries in 2023. That count covers all snack bars and retail bakeries (coffee shops and cafes included), not only bakeries and dessert shops. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Fulton County, IL spend on food away from home?

About $47.5M a year, or $3,442 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 12 bakeries and dessert shops on map listings, it comes to $4M per shop. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only bakeries and dessert shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,795 households in Fulton County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Fulton County, IL compare with the U.S. for bakeries and dessert shops?

Fulton County has 8.7 bakeries and dessert shops per 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 9.8. Spending per shop is $4M, 5% below the U.S. figure of $4.1M. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of bakeries and dessert shops to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,380 households, against one for every 1,369 across the U.S.

How fast is Fulton County, IL growing?

Population estimates put Fulton County at 32,901 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,795 households. Median household income in Fulton County is $60,599, 25% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 17.3%, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Fulton County scores 30 for bakeries and dessert shops (lower middle), #1,610 of 1,889 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Fulton County. It maps the bakeries and dessert shops on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for bakeries and dessert shops · All 56 business types in Fulton County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Fulton County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Fulton County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.